Awe, you awesome people with your awesome comments on my last entry almost made me cry real alligator tears this morning!

I had a rant all ready to go about my workout yesterday and the fact that I am not where I want to be, but now I think i'm just going to let it go. Because OhioRaven is right - I CAN rebuild, and become faster, better. My life shouldn't be about the end result but the effort I put in each and every day to become the person I visualize myself being. So i'll love myself instead. And give myself a break. And pat you guys on the back for helping me realize that i'm exactly where I need to be.

I heard through the grapevine that my alter-ego went to the store and bought some frozen yogurt yesterday. I think i'll treat myself to a serving later, while i'm icing a knee that has been through a lot lately.

And next time, I hope i'll stop myself before I start berating the body that has gotten me through the years so exceptionally well.

Pulled out the treadmill and dusted it off... walked for 5 minutes (with help from the railings) and it seemed to go alright. It's getting much easier to walk; I expect a lot of improvement this week in that regard. Iced afterwards. Doesn't seem like much, but felt like great strides were being taken ;) pun intended.

I made chicken enchilladas for dinner yesterday; pretty yummy and enough leftover for dinner tonight. Maybe with some wild rice and quinoa. Sad part is that I couldn't find whole grain tortillas and wasn't about to go searching after a full day at work.

Broke my sunglasses today. That should be my limit, so i'm sure the rest of the week will be great ;) sure, sure...

Getting pretty frustrated with all the snow; we're supposed to get even more on Thursday and Saturday :( I flat out refuse to do any more shovelling, so my visitors will probably be few and far between until it melts.

Puddles on 04/09/2013:
I can so relate. It will be the same thing here snow and rain and no summer or spring in site. Have a great day.

getmebackto150 on 04/09/2013:
So happy to hear you are able to walk easier, it doesn't seem like a little-my bother in law just had knee surgery in November and yesterday he went for his first run and he is like a kid on Christmas!!! Ugghh, hope your snow goes away!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

skinnygrlwithin on 04/09/2013:
Any achievement big or small is something to be proud of, so be super excited and know you are making progress

OhioRaven on 04/09/2013:
You CAN rebuild yourself. Stronger, Faster, Better.

V on 04/09/2013:
Awesome work on the treadmill, you will be in full force very very soon :) Hope you had a stellar day <3

Umpqua on 04/10/2013:
Good for you for getting on the treadmill. It sounds like your recovery is going well!

legcramps - Monday Apr 08, 2013

Weight: 167.5

Ended up having a fantastic weekend, even though I broke down a couple times due to feeling sorry for myself. It happens.

Friday night after visiting a friend I just hung out at home and attempted to get to bed early so that I could put a full day of cleaning in on Saturday. I started to watch a few episodes of Criminal Minds, and for some reason I couldn't stop watching it. Went to bed around midnight.

Saturday was a late morning wake-up call, which was basically a sign of how the rest of the day would go. First, it snowed. I tried to ignore it. I took down all the curtains and threw them in the wash, wiped the walls and windowsills, washed the inside of the windows. Broke my mop. Looked at the snow. Cue breakdown #1. Managed to fix it by using pliers and elbow grease. Best not to ask for details or enquire about what this mop now looks like. I needed a Cascade Councillor.

Since I couldn't put my curtains outside to dry, I threw them into the dryer and started another load of wash. Did the dishes. Took a shower. Brought the curtains upstairs to iron. Forgot about them while getting lost in more episodes of Criminal Minds.

Woke up nice and early on Sunday; noticed it was still snowing; ate a big breakfast, then got to work ironing those curtains.

Broke the iron.

Had to buy another one. No stores were open. Called Mom in a panic; she calmed me down and steered me in the direction of the one store that was open on Sundays. On the way back to my car, my knee started squabbling. Cue breakdown #2. IN PUBLIC.

Went home. Ironed like a madwoman since I had guests coming over in approx 15 minutes.

Chopped up veggies and snacks for guests. We watched movies. And I relaxed. After my guests left, I had a sandwich for dinner and watched another movie. Fell asleep.

The moral of the story is that, sometimes, just sometimes, I am happy that it's Monday and I can squirrel myself away in my office for eight hours straight. Yessir, life is good. And my house is pretty darn clean.

Progress as of today: 17.5 lbs lost so far, only 7.5 lbs to go!

getmebackto150 on 04/08/2013:
Yikes, thats a lot of cleaning issues! More support for my motto of let me just ignore the dirt, lol... Ive been know to have multiple breakdowns (sometimes in public) so I feel you there!!! Glad you found an open store... Have a great monday!!

legcramps on 04/08/2013:
Thanks! I usually ignore the dirt LOL but for some reason I had cleaning on my brain for the weekend - maybe to feel less guilty about not driving to see my Dad.

Puddles on 04/08/2013:
If people come over to my place to see a clean house I would rather not have them over. Girl you have to relax and take life a little more lightly. Life is to be enjoy if not all the time most of the time. We all have our breakdowns and nothing wrong with them. Have a great day.

legcramps on 04/08/2013:
I wasn't cleaning because I had guests coming - they wouldn't care how messy my house is! Just wanted to get a good start on it, but i've learned my lesson now!!! LOL

Umpqua on 04/08/2013:
What a weekend! At least you got a jumpstart on your spring cleaning. I hope today is better for you and no more broken stuff!

missdetermined on 04/08/2013:
Your cleaning has gotten me motivated to do some of my own! Sorry you had a rough weekend, breakdowns aren't fun at all. Hope you're feeling better being back in the swing of things!

missdetermined on 04/08/2013:
Your cleaning has gotten me motivated to do some of my own! Sorry you had a rough weekend, breakdowns aren't fun at all. Hope you're feeling better being back in the swing of things!

lolla on 04/08/2013:
love your post, made me laugh. WOW you had a lot of energy and I am so very envious, I've been a big lazy bum lately.

V on 04/08/2013:
Sorry about your mini meltdowns this weekend and you did well handling it all IMO, hope you had a nice stress free workday :) RYC I would love to take all my aggressions out with my workouts but unfortunately it is recovery week so i can't get all resickulous, LOL Yoga class this evening mellowed me out though!

I had a nice evening, got a few things accomplished and had my workout buddies over. While they did a walking workout DVD, I completed my knee exercises and did a little walking-on-the-spot. Sure didn't like the energy of the DVD though - made me want to blast out a sweaty workout so I had to keep reminding myself that i'm not ready for that yet.

Dinner was really good - sausage with brown rice and cooked veggies. Same thing on the menu for today's dinner. Something to look forward to!

Breakfast - blueberry muffin, orange juice, mocha

Lunch - turkey sandwich, salad dressing, spinach

Snack - raw carrots, no dip

Dinner - sausage, brown rice, cooked veggies

Visiting a friend tonight and then i'm going to take it easy. I had planned on going into the city to visit Dad tomorrow, but it's SNOWING here today so i'm not sure that's going to happen. Too much opportunity for icy road conditions. So tomorrow might be a floor mopping and laundry day instead. Maybe i'll get started on spring cleaning by washing the curtains. Exciting!

Progress as of today: 17.5 lbs lost so far, only 7.5 lbs to go!

Puddles on 04/05/2013:
Have a great weekend. We are getting snow again tomorrow. Today was nice and sunny but really cool almost cold.

mskitty on 04/08/2013:
Hope your weekend went well and that there was less stuff going on to complain about. I get complainy too after a long week.

legcramps - Thursday Apr 04, 2013

Weight: 167.5

I must have needed sleep because after I ate dinner yesterday I blacked out and didn't wake up until 4:30 this morning.

Also, my knee hurts. That really sucks.

But I didn't snack at all last night. LOL.

Guess I have to do all the things I wanted to do yesterday today instead. Good news - today I put my knee brace on and it's fitting well, so i'm hoping that means no more tensor wrap! It should be a lot easier to get around now.

Breakfast - oatmeal with pb and 1/2 banana, mocha

Lunch - turkey sandwich, salad dressing, spinach

Snack - raw carrots, no dip

Dinner - STILL have sausage; maybe brown rice and cooked veggies with it

Knee exercises, as much as I can do without pain.

Progress as of today: 17.5 lbs lost so far, only 7.5 lbs to go!

grannyannie on 04/04/2013:
Wow. You must have been exhausted! Sorry about your knee, hope it feels better soon. Have a great day.

lolla on 04/04/2013:
sorry about your knee, but at least the brace will help you for sure. Have a great day.

V on 04/04/2013:
Yep you def must have needed the sleep, sorry that your knee is causing you pain :( hey good news about switching to the brace, i am sure it will be easier to get around <3 Love ya girl!!

Busy yesterday; ran errands after work, visited a friend, and bought a few groceries. I had dinner (perogies and sausage, green beans, onions) and snacked on a few potato chips, did my knee exercises, cleaned up in the kitchen, showered and it was pretty much bedtime by then.

Kind of hope today is the same; i'm happier when i'm kept busy. But not too busy, of course. Then I just go nuts.

Dinner - still have perogies and sausage with onions, no more green beans so maybe some steamed broccoli

Today i'm going to work on income tax returns. Yuck!

Progress as of today: 17.5 lbs lost so far, only 7.5 lbs to go!

lolla on 04/03/2013:
I know how you feel, being busy makes me happy too. The Library I work at was dead yesterday so I was miserable. I will try to invent things to do today. Glad your knee is feeling better every day. Your food looks great!

lolla on 04/03/2013:
I know how you feel, being busy makes me happy too. The Library I work at was dead yesterday so I was miserable. I will try to invent things to do today. Glad your knee is feeling better every day. Your food looks great!

grannyannie on 04/03/2013:
I think about food less when I'm busy. I need to be busy more often! :) Hope the knee is coming along well.

Puddles on 04/03/2013:
Good for you busy is good. No time to think about food. Happy to hear your knee is doing better you will be back to normal soon. Have a great day.

V on 04/03/2013:
I hear ya, I feel like I need to keep busy most of the time, well except when I am chillaxin on my days off ;) Hope you had another busy day <3

Umpqua on 04/04/2013:
I know you share my frustration - if I want to sit on my butt I want to do it because I can, not because I have to! I hope you're having a good one.

legcramps - Tuesday Apr 02, 2013

Weight: 167.5

What a crazy weekend!!! It was great to see a lot of my extended family this past weekend for the Easter break; we did a lot of egg colouring, went to a hockey game and out for ice cream - very busy but also an extremely happy time for all!

Now I am attempting to ween myself off of the need to eat every 15 minutes. I went off my plan of whole grain, plant-based foods, but hope to start working at moving back into it within the week (need to use up some leftovers).

My knee has been getting better with each passing day. After attempting to wear my knee brace on Saturday and failing miserably (too tight), I went back to wrapping it myself each day. Which is fine; i'd rather be comfortable than struggling with it. The knee itself still feels tight, but exercising it loosens things up and i'm confident that i'll be walking normally again within the next two weeks. After slacking on my knee exercises this weekend, i'm back to scheduling it in each day and I hope to advance to ten minute walks starting next week. We'll see how it goes!

Lunch - turkey sandwich on whole grain (using up the rest of the salad dressings for the spread) with spinach leaves

Snack - raw carrots, no dip

Dinner - I have some perogies with sausage to use up, along with cooked onion and green beans

The snow has been melting here over the past few days... i'm panicking as I don't want it to melt so fast that my basement floods. I'll be keeping a close eye on this until spring has sprung. And then the joy of spring cleaning! I'm so looking forward to opening up the windows, washing the walls and blinds, carpet cleaning and the like. I would also like to repaint the bathroom a fresh new colour.

Progress as of today: 17.5 lbs lost so far, only 7.5 lbs to go!

OhioRaven on 04/02/2013:
Have a real good day, LC. Praying for your knee.

legcramps on 04/02/2013:
Thanks, Ohio! Need all the prayers I can get ;)

Umpqua on 04/02/2013:
I'm glad you had a fun holiday weekend with the family, and excellent news on your knee recovery!

V on 04/02/2013:
So happy that your knee is feeling alot better, Hey LOVE the decorated eggs on your fb page, you are so creative :)

horn_of_plenty on 04/02/2013:
hey girl! blood test will come back in a week or two. i got a second opinion from a different orthopedist who adviced i shouldn't stay completely off my feet :-) so i'm out of the wheelchair & will be going to work tomorrow. i feel better knowing a second doctor's opinion. we skipped the bone density test bc in the morning i had to stand, but still was in the wheelchair, until my appt later at 4pm... glad not to miss another day of work! i want to save my sick days! for nice weather!

horn_of_plenty on 04/02/2013:
hey girl! blood test will come back in a week or two. i got a second opinion from a different orthopedist who adviced i shouldn't stay completely off my feet :-) so i'm out of the wheelchair & will be going to work tomorrow. i feel better knowing a second doctor's opinion. we skipped the bone density test bc in the morning i had to stand, but still was in the wheelchair, until my appt later at 4pm... glad not to miss another day of work! i want to save my sick days! for nice weather!

legcramps - Wednesday Mar 27, 2013

Weight: 167.5

Pretty busy today seeing as i'm off for the rest of the week. No time for commenting; hopefully I can get on here tomorrow for that.

Foods yesterday:

Breakfast - mocha

Lunch - turkey sandwich

Dinner - turkey sandwich

Snack - peanut butter sandwich

Yeah, overdid it on the sandwiches, for sure. Usually that happens when I haven't planned my meals well enough and when there's a loaf of bread laying around. Lesson learned.

I ended up going to the grocery store yesterday because I was craving a sandwich for dinner. I bought some turkey and multigrain bread and it hit the spot.

It was a long day though, and my knee was bothering me a bit. I go to the clinic this afternoon to have the stitches removed and i'm going to ask my GP why my knee is still swollen. Maybe he will give me an anti-inflammatory script. Hope so, because it's pretty frustrating and i'd like to put my knee brace back in use instead of having to keep wrapping it every day. Regardless, it will be nice to get the stitches out.

Yesterday's Foods were really good:

Breakfast - mocha, apple

Lunch - cafeteria sandwich, broccoli soup

Dinner - turkey sandwich loaded with spinach

Exercise - knee strengthening

Today is my last day of relaxing at home after work. Tomorrow there will be a family dinner, Thursday I am off work and so will spend a lot of time at Grandma's, and Friday is another family day with Easter Egg colouring shenanigans. The weekend won't be much different, but i'm looking forward to seeing some family members that I haven't seen since summer. So long as I am able to continue resting my knee all should be well.

Progress as of today: 17.5 lbs lost so far, only 7.5 lbs to go!

grannyannie on 03/26/2013:
Hope the swelling in your knee goes down. It's probably normal, but I know it's a pain to have to wrap it.

Sounds like a nice holiday weekend. Enjoy!

V on 03/26/2013:
Hope your swelling goes down :( OOh Easter Egg shenannagins sounds fun! I remember your decorative festive eggs last year, I am sure you will have a blast :) RYC it is REALLY easy to listen to the Master of sexiness ;) LOL Have a great evening <3

Howdy, back to the grind! Good news for me is that I only have to work today, tomorrow, and half of Wednesday this week. Not a bad countdown leading up to the Easter weekend :)

Breakfast - mocha, and I will walk down to the cafeteria for something to eat when it opens at 9. My fridge is almost completely void of breakfast items. And I was running late today.

Lunch - *sigh* something from the cafeteria again. Probably a turkey sandwich on whole grain bread; so glad we have healthy options here.

Snack - If I am starving I might grab some raw veggies from the cafeteria. The cafeteria will get a lot of my business today ;)

Dinner - The last of the lentil stew, some green beans, and 1/2 cup of brown rice because you can never have enough carbs. And also because that's about all I have left in my house besides a multitude of cream of mushroom soup and a host of pudding. Which kind of goes against my plant-based, whole foods idea.

Grocery shopping soon. Not today, but soon. This week sometime.

Exercise - I got a few more knee exercises from a friend on the weekend, so tonight I will be going through my routine and the new routine.

Also time to call my GP to get the stitches in my knee removed! I hope this means there will be some good progress this week!

Progress as of today: 17.5 lbs lost so far, only 7.5 lbs to go!

grannyannie on 03/25/2013:
Sounds like you'll be able to eat healthy today. Hope your knee is healing quickly.

skinnygrlwithin on 03/25/2013:
That's awesome news about the stitches... and I hate the feeling of an empty house with no food... especially when you're trying to stay on track but you seem to have good options to rely on in your cafeteria.

hollybelle on 03/25/2013:
You are rally hanging in there with the knee recovery - good job!

getmebackto150 on 03/25/2013:
Your menu looks great!! Healthy options at work is a VERY good thing!!

V on 03/25/2013:
So jealous of your short work week but still excited for you just the same :) RYC yep it is finally my turn to read "50 Shades of Grey" unless it is a book that I really want, all of our friends share books..I was a little reluctant since i am not a fan of romance novels but there is so much sex in the book, the romance takes back seat..hahahahah If you haven't read it yet, it is a page turner my friend ;) Have a good one!